Byzantine Greek A [ LGLOR2791 ]

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The course is intended for students who have followed the first cycle course in ancient Greek, or show a level of knowledge judged sufficient by the teacher.

Mastery of the Greek language of the Byzantine period.

Alternately with LGLOR2792, this course deals with texts written in Greek between the IVth and the XVth centuries, which bear witness to the evolution of Greek, starting from classical Greek and and finally arriving at modern Greek. The reading of texts is also the occasion of illustrating notions of Byzantine history, of the history of Byzantine literature and institutions.

At the end of this course, the student will be capable of reading, translating  and analysing Byzantine Greek texts from the IVth to the XVth century, of an advanced level. He will also be able to carry out a personal research on the texts concerned.

Assessment is continuous, but there will be an oral exam at the end of the year: reading and translation of a text already seen, grammatical explanations, commentaries.

The course is conducted like a seminar: the texts prepared by the students are analysed during the course, and enriched by grammatical, linguistic, historical, cultural and other commentaries. From time to time, complementary exposés on special points of history or literature will be given by the teacher. A collection of the recommended readings will be supplied.

The Byzantine world (330-1453) gave birth to an abundant literary production in Greek. The Byzantine texts belong to several literary genres (historiography, philosophy, poetry, theology, novels, etc.) and illustrate different levels of the language, either those close to classical models, or those influenced by spoken  and popular language. These texts are also the reflection of a society, with its cultural, religious and political conceptions. The reading of the texts permits these different aspects to be illustrated.

Conceived as an initiation to research, the course demands a work of preparation on the part of the student.

Texts and materials will be provided by the teacher.

The teachers will meet with the students at the beginning of the year, to fix the timetable.